Loyal Lapdog
by XRenaandAndersonX
Summary: What if Hans had survived? What if Hans had gone to the only people he could? What if Hans sought shelter with the very people he once called "enemy"? I wonder how loyal a hungry dog really is...


Ch. 1: New Recruit

It had been only a few hours since Millennium's attack on London, and Integra and Seras were back safely at the Hellsing mansion, nestled together in the one of the rooms like starving pups, huddling close to stay warm.  
Integra didn't say much, and neither did Seras, being a tad odd for the latter one as she was often the chatter-box.  
But what COULD she say? There wasn't much to be said.  
Millennium attacked London, bam, boom, end of story.  
That was all there was to be SAID about the event, and Seras couldn't think of anything to add to IT with that mousy little brain of hers.  
Integra spent most of the time huddled at Seras's side pondering over what Major had said.  
His talk of monsters and humans couldn't help but ring true to her, just the slightest shred of truth from his words shedding light on her dim persepctive of reality.  
He had delved deeper, talking about black and white, that a monster isn't BORN, it is CREATED, that no one is truly evil, they are MADE that way.  
But who had done that to MAJOR? Who had made him that way? Who had made him a monster?  
Integra figured that, now, she would never know.  
The only chance she had had was to ask Major, and he was DEAD.  
The answer to her question was LOST now, lost with his death, and she could never give it back, so, it was best to stop trying, she supposed.  
With the loss of their French mercernaries, it was time for reparations.  
And reparations meant MONEY, and MONEY was something Integra didn't like SHARING.  
And, then, there was the loss of Walter and Alucard, the pet monster and the loyal butler.  
Integra didn't feel like she could BEAR with this tragic loss, and Seras hugged her tightly, asking her if she was cold when she saw Sir Integra shaking.  
But, of course, it was not the cold, and, of course, Integra didn't tell her OTHERWISE.  
Seras had taken the liberty of turning the room into a fort, and she had placed pillows against the windows and furniture against the door.  
She had wrapped a long blanket all around Integra's body and smashed one of the chairs to pieces so she could the legs as projectiles.  
She was going to PROTECT her master, no matter what it took.  
Seras knew the furniture and pillows were stupid defenses against vampire Nazis and any other thing that might creep up on them at this time, but it was the best she had, and you use what you've got.  
Integra began to feel drowsy, and, with one last order, she commanded Seras to keep watch while she slept.  
Seras nodded, her eyes worried as they traversed across the weary figure of her master.  
The old woman had taken quite a beating, and her left eye bled profusely, probably blinding her and rending her vision not near as good as usual.  
Seras could tell that she would probably LOSE that eye after all this was said and done, but she didn't let it worry her as she turned back to the door, allowing her master to at least have the privilege of SLEEPING after this hard few hours.  
And she would definitely need the rest when she saw the amount of money reparations were gonna' cost.

* * *

It was about two days later that Integra awoke, finding the mansion in a much different manner than when she had left it.  
Apparently, Seras hadn't lost any time at all in fixing it back up, doing her best to impress Sir Integra when she awoke.  
And she had done it.  
She had impressed her.  
Reaching for the covers, she, instead, touched her face, and, there, she felt a covering over her left eye.  
Rubbing her right one, she sat up in bed and reached shakily for her glasses on the other counter.  
Her body was numb and refused to move, but, after much streinous effort, she got the glasses to sit on her face, and she touched her left eye again.  
She was now awake enough to assume all that happened.  
She was wearing an eye-patch.  
And that probably meant that, while she was asleep for those two days, Seras had taken her somehwere to get her fixed up.  
Whatever it was, she thanked Seras for being smart enough and kind enough to do so, and she swung her legs over the side of the bed, grinding her teeth together at the sudden pain when the soles of her feet touched the floor.  
It was an unpleasant feeling, like needles pricking all across the skin.  
The only thing she could match it with was swinging outside in the cold until, deciding to go back in, you jumped from the swing set, and, OUCH, your feet wouldn't move for another few seconds.  
It was probably from being cramped up in bed so long, not the cold from the swing set incident.  
Nonetheless, she wanted coffee, and she wanted coffee NOW.  
Getting out of bed, she stood to her feet, swaying a little back and forth like a drunken man before taking her first step.  
It was slow, and she fumbled a lot, having to use the counter for support when she fell back down.  
She ended up in a slight crouch, using the wall to maneuver herself forward while her feet skidded after her, her hands sweaty and slimy as they stuck to the wall, almost impossible to shake off every time she decided to take another step forward.  
She felt like a gecko stuck to the wall by his grimy, webbed feet, and she shook her head, dispelling any thoughts of geckos, or newts, or any of the sort.  
She was not some unsightly reptilian or amphibian creature, she was Sir Integra Fairbrook Wingates Hellsing, and she was going to STAY that way.  
Or, at least, she HOPED she would...  
By the time she had made it to the kitchen, she had slipped at least two or three times, having taken quite the spill once on a wet spot somewhere outside in the hall nearby.  
She had no idea what might have caused it, but she didn't really care as she made her way to the coffee-maker.  
She also had no idea of where Seras was or might be, but she found no use in calling Seras for aid.  
She was her own woman, and she could at least get herself her own damned cup of coffee, Heaven help her.  
She wasn't crippled, and she had no intentions of allowing Seras to molly-coddle her like she WAS.  
She still had arms and legs, and she intended to use them, no matter how unreasonably human it made her feel without Alucard by her side to help her.  
When she reached for the coffee mug, she nearly doubled over at the sudden weight.  
She hadn't been expecting this sudden loss in control.  
She expected it probably had something to do with her amount of blood loss from being shot in the eye, but she still couldn't truly grasp how just one little eye could affect her body so badly.  
Ignoring it, she tried to lift the mug again until, screaming as it shattered glass all across the floor, it cut her toes and seared her skin with flesh-burning heat, almost sending her into a mad fit of tears and cursing.  
Integra had already lost so much.  
Why couldn't anything just go RIGHT for her? For ONCE? Just ONCE?  
She felt to blame God for all that had happened, but, for some odd reason, she thought back to Anderson and realized how displeased with her he would have been could he have been there to see it.  
She decided not to.  
She wasn't going to give Anderson the pleasure of seeing how weak Protestants really were when it came to faith.  
It would only prove him right.  
Lifting the mug again, she set it on top of the counter, now shattered and without coffee, and she began to make another batch of coffee with the use of ANOTHER mug.  
This took a good few minutes, but the reward was well worth it.  
A nice, hot, steaming cup of coffee.  
She licked her lips and outstretched her arm, saying, "Walter, CUP, please."  
And only too late did she realize the error she had made.  
Suddenly, all of her sadness from earlier came back in a torrentous wave, pouring over her like a large sea, drowning her in its sorrows.  
She had not realized how detrimental it had been until then, but, NOW, the sudden loss of her teacher and butler (perhaps even FATHER-figure) had hit a strong NERVE within her, punching her in the gut with its harsh sense of reality.  
Yes.  
Walter was dead.  
And nothing could be done about that.  
Bowing her head, she decided it was best not to dwell on the past and set out for a cup herself.  
But this one would be the fourth or so slip of the day, and her foot splashed in a puddle of murky brown, and she went, backwards into the floor below.  
Her head banged against the hard wooden floor, and her eye-patch fell off, a new splatter of blood soaring free with no barrier to stand in its way.  
It was like a shocking call from reality, ever too harsh and cruel in its endeavors to wake Integra from mental slumber.  
But it had done its job, and Integra found all emotion spilling from her eyes as she could no longer take it.  
She had finally accepted the fact that Walter was dead and Alucard was never coming back, so, why on Earth was it so hard to comprehend that?  
For some reason, she couldn't stop crying, and even the messed up eye of hers found itself leaking with liquids that had been thought to have dried up long ago.  
Alucard was right.  
She really WAS just a little girl...  
She hadn't been ready for this big responsibility of handling a massive operation such as this, and Major had shown her her own faults as a leader.  
But the will to fight was still there.  
The loss of her men had made her all the more wiser, the stronger, and she took Major's attack as a challenge, blinking the tears from her eyes in a matter of seconds.  
Crying wasn't going to change anything, and, though it may be nice to cry every once in a while, it was best to not let her emotions get the best of her.  
Yes. This battle had made her stronger, and she would continue to get stronger as her life progressed.  
This wasn't the end.  
This was merely the beginning...  
There was a ringing of the doorbell, and, despite the fallen eyepatch and the hazardous coffee below, she made her way into the hall and to the door with the use of her hands, clinging to the wall like a lifeboat.  
It was then that Seras finally appeared, ready to answer the door only to show shock and dismay at her master's appearance, frolicking around in frantic worry like a mother duck for her ducklings.  
Come to think of it, Seras kind of REMINDED Integra of a duck sometimes...  
How queer...  
But she waved the poor girl away who frowned, slinking back into the darkness with a droop of wing at her master's coldness.  
Integra smiled, suddenly filled with pride that at least Seras was still here.  
That much kept her going.  
Having regained her former courage, something instilled into ever Hellsing heir at birth, she opened the door without hesitation or worry.  
"Hello? Who's there?"  
But what she saw was enough to freeze her there in place, hand glued to the door, back stiff as she whispered, "Captain..."

* * *

Well, well, it looks like the Hellsing org. is getting a new recruit...and, Integra, a new lover. ^^ Stay tuned for what's next. I will try to keep them in character. Until next time. ONWARD, AND FORTHWITH! XD XD


End file.
